Road to inspiration

BENGALURU : Milind Soman has always hit the news for his record-breaking initiatives in running. But few know that at the Ultraman, a couple of years ago, Soman almost missed the finish line. The three-day event includes 423 km of cycling, a 10-km swim and 84-km ultra-marathon, and during the cycling stage, Soman first went off the route erroneously and then had a flat tyre. “These things happen but that day, he literally made it to the finish line with five seconds to spare. And on the running day too he finished with about five minutes to spare,” shares Gauri Jayaram, founder of Active Holiday Company.  

This is just one of the tidbits that are in store at The RunAway Show, which is hosted by Jayaram and will feature actor and runner Milind Soman in its second episode. The hour-long chat will take place on Instagram and will be live on both Soman and Jayaram’s pages.As a build-up to the Berlin marathon, which is taking place virtually this Sunday, Soman will share some insights from his barefoot running experiences. According to Jayaram, the most popular international race among Indians is the Berlin Marathon, owing to its flat course. The marathon has a 2:01:39 challenge.

The goal is to cover as many kilometers as possible within that time frame, which is a world record time set by Eliud Kipchoge in 2018. “Now, all the marathons are virtual, with each one coming up with different ways to differentiate themselves,” she says, adding that the show is meant for runners who love to travel.

With the pandemic, Jayaram suddenly found her work coming to a standstill. Even as she believes that there will be a pent-up demand that will lead to a surge in travel, Jayaram debated about what else she could add to her portfolio of being an entrepreneur, author and runner. It was then that Bangalore Runners, a running community in the city, proposed that she host a talk show. “It combines all my interests of travel, running and interacting with people,” she says. Having interacted with over 1,000 runners every year -- including some who have run in seven continents -- she believes that the show can be sustained for a while. 

Having known Soman from close quarters -- he launched Jayaram’s book in multiple cities and has done the Chicago, Athens, and Jerusalem marathons through her company -- Jayaram feels there are unknown stories about him that need to be shared. “He’s an inspirational figure whose story needs to be told. I’ve even met his mother who is equally passionate about fitness. Besides being a supermodel, actor and runner, he’s also an entrepreneur,” she says.   The show will be live on Sept. 25, 6.30pm, on Milind 
Soman and Gauri Jayaram’s Instagram handles.